About this project

Dear backers,

Almost 400 backers ! A great media coverage, more than 50 articles, thousands of tweets, hundreds of Facebook posts... Thanks a lot for your great support!

Unfortunately, that was not enough to ensure the success of our Kickstarter campaign. But the projects lives on. Many distributors are now interested to distribute Openmix in various countries around the world. We will be working to finalize the distribution deals in the coming months and will keep you posted to let you know where to buy your own Openmix. Follow the Openmix adventure on: myopenmix.com

Thank you for believing in Openmix ! We're so greatful ! Thank you all !

"If you want a portable, easy way to combine two sound sources, Openmix looks like it could be a kickass (and cheap!) option, and one of the better projects on Kickstarter." Gizmodo"Using the device is as simple as plugging in, hitting play and mixing. The setup is incredibly simple and doesn't require a massive instruction manual." Trend Hunter

"This teeny-tiny device called Openmix might be the solution you need for those times when you're raring to be the DJ of the party" Engadget

"If you never know when a party will strike or don’t want to deal with an app, then you might like the Openmix." Coolest Gadgets

Thanks you all for your encouragement ! Continue to spread the word by sharing Openmix on social media.

Openmix is the smallest audio mixer in the world.
Openmix is a small, simple, and stylish, audio mixer that allows you to mix and switch between any audio sources (smartphone, mp3 player, tablet, computer, Walkman, etc).

Simply by connecting two audio sources to your Openmix and plugging it into a speaker or sound system, you can share and mix music anywhere with anyone! Thanks to a miniaturized audio crossfader, the user can quickly mix back and forth between two tracks or create a smooth transition from the end of one song to the beginning of another.

With Openmix, the party goes on without interruption!

In the spirit of the “Ghetto Blaster”, the Openmix project is born out of the simple passion to make sharing music easy and fun anywhere you go!

Music is the ultimate “mood setter” whether it’s at a house party, weekend BBQ, bonfire on the beach, or that impromptu party in the girl’s bathroom, we commonly find ourselves sharing our best experiences to the sound of music. Now, with the miniaturization of smartphones, mp3 players, and tablets, people are now able to bring their entire digital music collection everywhere they go.

Unfortunately, our experiences in sharing this music are still limited.New technology makes it easy to play music from your own digital devices and accounts, but not to mix selections from different people’s devices and switch effortlessly between them. Unless you have a DJ with professional equipment, you’re limited to makeshift setups and unpleasant sizzling sound effects.

Either the host of a get-together becomes responsible for creating a fixed playlist of his/her own music, someone else gets elected to become the DJ using their own music, or the ambiance is continuously interrupted as the Beyonce playing on Sarah’s phone gets bumped for Daft Punk new hit on Peter’s mp3 player.

With Openmix, the aim is not to get a pro beat match between songs but a smooth transition to go on with your party.
Some existing DJ apps do beat match but the songs have to be on the same phone and similar pro DJ equipment is much more expensive.

The third input audio stereo port allows adding every sound effect available on a DJ app.

If you feel like DJing you can add sound effects with the third input

Connect Openmix to your speakers or sound system and get ready to mix, share and party!

Openmix started as a simple design project and our guiding principles from the start have been:

Sharing: The heart of this project was to create something that makes sharing music together easy, fun, and spontaneous.

Small: It turns out size does matter! OpenMix is small enough to put in your back pocket, throw into a purse, clip to a backpack, or hang around your neck.

When people love music as much as we do, quality of sound is a real issue. So for this reason, beyond just focusing on a simple sleek look for Openmix, we've also worked hard at ensuring the electronic design provides a high quality musical experience. To do this we’ve made sure to select high quality components such as gold plated connectors and a customized high quality crossfader. Additionally, we've iterated through multiple circuit designs to ensure that the quality of sound is maintained as it passes through the Openmix device. Listen below to hear an example of an Openmix in action and the ability to mix between two audio tracks without any sound quality losses.

A simple example of the mix effect created between Youtube on a PC and a mp3 on a smartphone.

The last 6 months of the Openmix project have been spent on developing multiple revisions of the functional prototypes and improving both the sound quality and the design so that it is smaller, easier to use, provides a great sound and is easier to manufacture.

We’ve put this idea of “party anywhere” to the test! We’ve noticed immediately how much the group dynamics can change when people are given the chance to take on the role of DJ and non-obtrusively share their music whenever and wherever!

Now we’re ready for the REAL test: Sharing means that we need to get Openmix out into the world and see how people from all over the world, with the complete spectrum of musical interest, will interact with what we’ve created. To do this we need to fulfil a minimum order quantity (MOQ) to manufacture Openmix and raise enough money to pay for the production tooling. Beyond this financial support, we also need your feedback. What we want to know is: Where have you taken your Openmix? What did you mix? Who did you share it with? This is where Kickstarter and the backers who we hope to support our project come in!

Gabriel Danet

The Openmix inventor. From Mechanical and Design studies at Strate College, Gabriel was specialized in interaction Design. Give coherence, human and good mood in his project. He creates with his childhood friend in 2014 the Black Beans agency, a digital communication brand. Born with the Hip Hop culture, he ever tries to participate to this big adventure and respect the spirit of the old‘school.

He met Digitalarti, producer of digital artists & designers, at a University project presentation and they loved the idea to get the Openmix project off the ground.

Jordan McRae After completing his engineering studies at MIT and Stanford, Jordan created Octo23 technologies dedicated to the invention of new technologies in clean energy, water purification, and robotics for ocean conservation. From developing novel wind energy systems in Hong Kong and Guatemala, to living in France and successfully launching a Kickstarter campaign and mass production of B-Squares, Jordan has travelled the world in pursuit of inspiration for his inventions. After moving to Paris in 2010 Jordan began balancing his technology background with creative art projects and working with designers such as Gabriel Danet on this Openmix project with Digitalarti.

DIGITALARTI The aim of Digitalarti is to produce, promote and distribute digital creations from digital artists, designers, coders...

Malo Girod de l'Ain, founder & CEO of Digitalarti was immediately seduced by Gabriel's ideas, by the design of the OpenMix prototype and by the way this could change our way to share music. Without hesitation Digitalarti chose to support the young creator and join the Openmix team.

Digitalarti has its headquarters in Paris and its US subsidiary in New York headed by Danielle Cheng. www.digitalarti.com

Risks and challenges

Now that we are ready to manufacture prototypes, our primary challenges and risks are associated with the mass production units after a successful Kickstarter campaign. These challenges and our approach to limit their risks are the following :

Production Delays - There are always unexpected issues that arise during the first production of an object like Openmix and when balancing time, costs, and quality, delays are bound to happen. Luckily, members of the Openmix team have more than 5 years experience in manufacturing in China and Europe and have used this experience to develop a realistic roadmap for the production of Openmix. We’ve also already sourced our critical components and contacted multiple manufacturers in Europe and China so that we’re ready to begin production as soon as campaign is complete.

Production Quality : Another challenge will be to ensure that the quality we've put into our design and selection of components is maintained through the production process. To achieve this we have anticipated the costs required for multiple visits to our suppliers in China and Europe, as well as working with Quality Assurance (QA) professionals during the production of Openmix.

Order Fullfilment : You’re not going to be partying anywhere if your Openmix is stuck somewhere in customs. From our previous experiences in launching successful Kickstarter projects, we know that order fulfillment is a real challenge to ensure that everyone receives their reward. To minimize the risk associated with order fulfillment, we are selecting experienced international logistics partners to handle the delivery of all of our rewards.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $59 or more
About $59

OPENMIX PARTY KIT (EARLY): Take the PARTY ANYWHERE with your OPENMIX (Black and Blue) and a customized OPENMIX portable speaker, lanyard, 5" audio extension cable, and carrying case. LIMITED TO FIRST 200!!

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $3,699 or more
About $3,699

PREMIUM DISTRIBUTOR PACK:

A pack of 100 OPENMIX (Black & Blue) and 10 anodized aluminium OPENMIX (Red and Black). Premium retail accessories and packaging. Be the first retailer to receive OPENMIX with a special Kickstarter price.